"During the French Revolution, when the Reign of Terror came to an end, it was found that no one was left alive among the politicians except prudent cowards who had changed their opinions quickly enough to keep their heads on their shoulders. The result was twenty years of military glory, because there was no one left among the politicians with sufficient courage to keep the generals in order. The French Revolution was an exceptional time, but wherever organisation exists cowardice will be found more advantageous than courage. Of the men at the head of businesses, schools and lunatic asylums, and the like, nine out of ten will prefer the supple lickspittle to the outspoken man of independent judgement. In politics it is necessary to profess the party programme and flatter the leaders; in the navy it is necessary to profess antiquated views on naval strategy; in the army it is necessary to maintain a mediaeval outlook on everything; in journalism wage slaves have to use their brains to give expression to the opinions of millionaires; in education professors lose their jobs if they do not respect the prejudices of the illiterate.
The result of this state of affairs is that in practically every walk of life the men who come to the top have served a long apprenticeship in cowardice, while the honest and courageous have to be sought for in workhouses and prisons. Is this regrettable?
The modern world, owing to industrialism, requires social co-operation more than it was required in any earlier stage in the world's history. Now there are three reasons for which you may co-operate with a man: Because you love him and because you fear him, or because you hope to share the swag. These three motives are of differing importance in different regions of human co-operation: The first governs procreation, and the third governs politics. But the ordinary everyday business of government, whether in the state or in any other social institution, depends upon fear. A collection of fearless men would be ungovernable. The Vikings were men whom the King of Norway found ungovernable; They left Norway because they would not submit themselves to his sway. After a few centuries of adventure, they became peasants in the frozen valleys of lceland.
Consider, as a contrast, the great Duke of Marlborough. He secured the first steps in his career by causing his sister to become the mistress of James II. His great days were due to the passionate friendship between his wife and Queen Anne. Whenever he fought the French he beat them, but he was always ready to refrain from fighting if the King of France made it worth his while. He left a great name, and a great fortune, and his descendants to this day are patterns for patriots. The arts of success have changed little since his day, in spite of the nominal advent of democracy. Now, as in the past, if you wish for success you should be insinuating and pusillanimous rather than bold and self-reliant.
To those, therefore, whose ambition it is to die in the odour of sanctity, respected by bank managers, admired by friends and neighbours, and universally regarded as models of what a citizen should be, my advice is: Don't express your own opinions but those of your boss; Don't endeavour to realise ends which you yourself think good, but pursue rather those aimed at by some organisation supported by millionaires; In your private friendships select influential men if you can, or and failing that, men whom you judge likely to become influential. Do this, and you will win the good opinion of all the best elements in the community.
This is sound advice, but for my part, I would sooner die than follow it."
- The Advantage of Cowardice, Bertrand Russell. [From: Mortals and Others, v.1, 1975.］
Friday, May 06, 2005
Ok.... if you've already given up the llama song lyrics are here.
My supervisor's going to give me back my thesis draft today.... *cold feet*. Guidelines to good blogging:
1. Get browned.
2. Get miyagi-ed.
3. Get xia-suayed, i mean xia-xued.
4. Get agagooga-ed.
This is really random ... Jared Diamond is coming to melbourne to give a talk on 1 june! i might go.
Concoctions so far this year:
1. Zucchini pie with pita bread base. Ang moh-style dinner ... paired with a riesling that was okay, wasn't too fantastic.
2. Andrew salad, i.e. halal caeser salad (no bacon!) with some greek salad vegetables (spanish onions, cucumber, red capsicum)
3. Not-so-sweet peach ice-cream with walnuts (for the diabetics).
4. Fu juk with an overdose of gingko for chinese new year dinner at the Chia's. Thanks renee!
5. LovelyPurpleSweet potato soup! again , inspiration from shiokadelicious.
Coming up soon...
1. Lemon verbana-vodka liquer
2. Not-so-sweet Strawberrysmoothie
3. Coca-cola ham... glazed this time.
My supervisor's going to give me back my thesis draft today.... *cold feet*. Guidelines to good blogging:
1. Get browned.
2. Get miyagi-ed.
3. Get xia-suayed, i mean xia-xued.
4. Get agagooga-ed.
This is really random ... Jared Diamond is coming to melbourne to give a talk on 1 june! i might go.
Concoctions so far this year:
1. Zucchini pie with pita bread base. Ang moh-style dinner ... paired with a riesling that was okay, wasn't too fantastic.
2. Andrew salad, i.e. halal caeser salad (no bacon!) with some greek salad vegetables (spanish onions, cucumber, red capsicum)
3. Not-so-sweet peach ice-cream with walnuts (for the diabetics).
4. Fu juk with an overdose of gingko for chinese new year dinner at the Chia's. Thanks renee!
5. LovelyPurpleSweet potato soup! again , inspiration from shiokadelicious.
Coming up soon...
1. Lemon verbana-vodka liquer
2. Not-so-sweet Strawberrysmoothie
3. Coca-cola ham... glazed this time.
Ah ... since Agagooga is on hiatus i shall entertain all of you! hur hur hur. NOTE: AGAGOOGA =/= ANDREW!!!
http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/llama.php
- courtesy of Joel. I memorised the song after listening to it 5 times - see if you can do it in less!
http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/llama.php
- courtesy of Joel. I memorised the song after listening to it 5 times - see if you can do it in less!
"It is dangerous to be right when the government is wrong." - Voltaire
***
My statistics textbook reads like an advertisement for Minitab and PHStat (some statistical programs).
More sample exam questions:
1. A professor is attempting to predict the marks that students get for his final exam by regressing them against the amount of time spent studying for it. He has observations on these 2 variables for 6 students, as shown below:
a) Obtain the least square estimates of the intercept and slope coefficient in the professor's linear regression of Marks on Time spent studying.
(Punching my calculator, I get b0 = 119.555 and b1 = - 0.608)
b) Interpret the estimated slope coefficient and test whether it is different from zero at the 5% significance level.
(For every additional hour spent studying, the students lower their marks by 0.608 points. I don't feel like doing the hypothesis testing, so I'll skip it. Anyhow it's hard to present online.)
c) How many hours should one study to get 100 marks?
(yi = b0 + b1xi
100 = 119.555 - 0.608xi
xi = 32.16
One should study for 32.16 hours to get 100 marks.)
d) Can the estimated intercept value be sensibly interpreted? What lessons can we learn from this regression analysis?
(No. You can never get more than 100 marks. Don't study too much, for after some time you'll get negative returns like these poor chaps above.)
2. The average NUS student can pick 5 modules to study per semester. He has a choice of Type A modules (Mean grade 4.5, variance 0.5) or Type B modules (Mean grade 5.0, variance 1). The modules are assumed to be independent (ie covariance 0), and due to the bell curve grading system, the marks for the modules are normally distributed.
a) If he takes 3 Type A and 2 Type B modules, what is his mean CAP for the semester?
((3 x 4.5 + 2 x 5.0)/5 = 4.7)
b) What is the probability that his semestral CAP drops below 4.0 if he takes 5 Type A modules?
(P(X<20) = P(Z<20-22.5/25) = P(Z<-1) = P(Z>1) = 0.1587)
***
"Punctuated equlibria and genetic drift are already explained in the various posts. With regard to the former, nobody quite understands what Gould and Eldridge was rambling about and it certainly changed over time. So, forget about it."
Heh.
***
Pages which play songs after loading are really annoying. I was happily listening to my Mass In B Minor, Bwv 232 - Symbolum Nicenum (Credo) - I. Credo In Unum Deum, when the strains of a guitar and a guy singing became audible (Collide - Howie Day, I later found out). Everytime this happens I get this irrational fear that somehow my MP3 has become corrupted
And when one loads more than one of them at a time, thanks to the joys of tabbed browsing, a big mess is created. Luckily I have the 'Zap Plugins' bookmarklet.
***
This page on Tym's blog has become the (semi-)official bulletin board for 2A03A 2001 / 1A03A 2000. Ah, the wonders of modern communication.
***
The NUS network doesn't block access to Chick.com, unlike SCV (yes, it's still blocked by SafeSurf). This, of course, must be because there are too many fundies on campus.
I was very offended by this leaflet I found in the Arts Canteen. The cover was decorated with bright colours, and had ambiguously worded lines promising hope and that sort of thing. Of course, this got my guard up.
Sure enough, when I looked inside the leaflet promoted "the healing power of Jesus", and was complete with fulsome testimonials.
If health product makers can be jailed for false advertising, or at the very least have to put up disclaimers saying that their products' efficacy has not scientifically proven, what more this religious snake oil? Especially since many of the diseases cures are promised for are terminal ones, making this a crime a few order of magnitudes worse than selling magic stones or normal snake oil (which don't promise to save your soul or your life, and at least are tangible and can be held in your hands).
***
My statistics textbook reads like an advertisement for Minitab and PHStat (some statistical programs).
More sample exam questions:
1. A professor is attempting to predict the marks that students get for his final exam by regressing them against the amount of time spent studying for it. He has observations on these 2 variables for 6 students, as shown below:
Time spent studying (hours) Marks
103 58
90 65
100 60
80 70
76 72
70 80
a) Obtain the least square estimates of the intercept and slope coefficient in the professor's linear regression of Marks on Time spent studying.
(Punching my calculator, I get b0 = 119.555 and b1 = - 0.608)
b) Interpret the estimated slope coefficient and test whether it is different from zero at the 5% significance level.
(For every additional hour spent studying, the students lower their marks by 0.608 points. I don't feel like doing the hypothesis testing, so I'll skip it. Anyhow it's hard to present online.)
c) How many hours should one study to get 100 marks?
(yi = b0 + b1xi
100 = 119.555 - 0.608xi
xi = 32.16
One should study for 32.16 hours to get 100 marks.)
d) Can the estimated intercept value be sensibly interpreted? What lessons can we learn from this regression analysis?
(No. You can never get more than 100 marks. Don't study too much, for after some time you'll get negative returns like these poor chaps above.)
2. The average NUS student can pick 5 modules to study per semester. He has a choice of Type A modules (Mean grade 4.5, variance 0.5) or Type B modules (Mean grade 5.0, variance 1). The modules are assumed to be independent (ie covariance 0), and due to the bell curve grading system, the marks for the modules are normally distributed.
a) If he takes 3 Type A and 2 Type B modules, what is his mean CAP for the semester?
((3 x 4.5 + 2 x 5.0)/5 = 4.7)
b) What is the probability that his semestral CAP drops below 4.0 if he takes 5 Type A modules?
(P(X<20) = P(Z<20-22.5/25) = P(Z<-1) = P(Z>1) = 0.1587)
***
"Punctuated equlibria and genetic drift are already explained in the various posts. With regard to the former, nobody quite understands what Gould and Eldridge was rambling about and it certainly changed over time. So, forget about it."
Heh.
***
Pages which play songs after loading are really annoying. I was happily listening to my Mass In B Minor, Bwv 232 - Symbolum Nicenum (Credo) - I. Credo In Unum Deum, when the strains of a guitar and a guy singing became audible (Collide - Howie Day, I later found out). Everytime this happens I get this irrational fear that somehow my MP3 has become corrupted
And when one loads more than one of them at a time, thanks to the joys of tabbed browsing, a big mess is created. Luckily I have the 'Zap Plugins' bookmarklet.
***
This page on Tym's blog has become the (semi-)official bulletin board for 2A03A 2001 / 1A03A 2000. Ah, the wonders of modern communication.
***
The NUS network doesn't block access to Chick.com, unlike SCV (yes, it's still blocked by SafeSurf). This, of course, must be because there are too many fundies on campus.
I was very offended by this leaflet I found in the Arts Canteen. The cover was decorated with bright colours, and had ambiguously worded lines promising hope and that sort of thing. Of course, this got my guard up.
Sure enough, when I looked inside the leaflet promoted "the healing power of Jesus", and was complete with fulsome testimonials.
If health product makers can be jailed for false advertising, or at the very least have to put up disclaimers saying that their products' efficacy has not scientifically proven, what more this religious snake oil? Especially since many of the diseases cures are promised for are terminal ones, making this a crime a few order of magnitudes worse than selling magic stones or normal snake oil (which don't promise to save your soul or your life, and at least are tangible and can be held in your hands).
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
The Law Library is deathly quiet, due not just to its emptiness but also to the efforts of the Library Gestapo.
I have leftdue one essay close reading a prior work of mine and an open book statistics exam in which the book will likely be necessary but not sufficient and the exam very hard, going by last term's paper and the fact that a non-neglibible proportion of the cohort is from Science/Engineering.
Due to the exigencies of my current situation, I shall be on sabbatical once again from now till Friday.
I have left
Due to the exigencies of my current situation, I shall be on sabbatical once again from now till Friday.
"I do not take a single newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely the happier for it." - Thomas Jefferson
Random Playlist Song: Paganini - Violin Concerto No. 3 - 01 - Introduzione. Andantino - Allegro marziale
***
Readers are advised to check the "posted by" line at the end of each post to ascertain the identity of the poster.
Back to studying tomorrow. One last paper left - on Friday!
***
I had thought that, just as it is impossible to find Malaysian Fried Noodles anywhere -in- Malaysia, Singapore Bee Hoon is similarly impossible to find in Singapore.
However, in a restaurant along River Valley Road near Great World City, I found "Singapore Bee Hoon", fried with small prawns, small slices of chicken and vegetables, and with a slight red tinge to it. Tym informed me that the "Singapore" element of any dish with the "Singapore" appellation was a sprinkling of curry powder, and indeed that seemed to be the case. [Addendum: Meanwhile Yucheng informs me that 2 years ago, he sighted the same dish on the Island of Doom.]
People expressed disdain at this discovery, saying that they or their mothers could easily cook "Singapore Bee Hoon", but the culinary significance of this discovery cannot be underestimated.
***
A friend in BRMC (Barker Road Methodist Church) gave me probably the most reliable information so far on Lee Wei Kong, the ACJC rugby captain who got involved in the RTA (Road Traffic Accident).
He says that he was either an infidel or a weak christian, that they'd all been praying for him to be seduced by them, and that that day was his first time going to the church.
Meanwhile the BRMC website alternately names him "a friend of BRMC" and a member of BRMC. And he's been getting a lot of get well cards from innocent ACPS students. No doubt he is receiving a great deal of support, encouragement and inducement from similar sources, just as some victims of last year's Tsunami received both preaching and aid.
Unfortunately, especially under this barrage, I fear that he will be seduced by the dark side in his hour of despair. One can only hope for his soul. I am almost moved to go down myself, but know that I will be driven away with pitchforks, doused with Holy Water and burnt at the stake by his protectors.
***
Review of Chasms of Malice:
"The True Shield has been taken by a baddie and will, unless some lone champion rectifies the whole situation, inexplicably give the Khuddam nasties the ability to multiply according to the formula a(n)=7^(2n), a progression the book itself loses track of after the fourth term. That's right, they'll swamp THE WHOLE WORLD. It doesn't matter how many times those Allansian freaks save the planet in _their_ neighbourhood, some other hero slips up once in Khul and it's all for nothing."
nw.t: "first they will be 49, then 2,401, then 5,764,801, until they are uncountable hordes, and Orghuz becomes invincible"
***
To Honor the Earth, Speak to the Issues and Not the Myths - "In addition to having been "grown or produced within 100 miles of Houston (salt, pepper, and olive oil were exempt)," the planet-saving "test supper" could not "have been slathered with pesticides." One conjures an image of mad farmers gleefully going about splashing pesticides all over their crops oblivious to the costs of the pesticides and with some perverse desire to poison their customers and destroy their market and the planet. The use of the term "slathered" to describe the very careful use of low-dose pesticides in modern agriculture and the regulations involved, reflects a prevailing ignorance among food writers and the general public that has been very carefully nurtured by the back-to-nature enthusiasts. They assume that "organic" agriculture does not use pesticides. This is a myth if not an outright fraud. The "organic" movement argues that the "natural" pesticides that it uses are more benign than the synthetic pesticides used in conventional agriculture, but there is no evidence for that. And some of these "natural" pesticides are administered in much larger quantities, which may not be enough to qualify as being "slathered" but certainly are a far closer approximation of "slathered" than are the synthetic pesticides used in conventional agriculture."
Arabic and Islamic themes in Frank Herbert's "Dune" - "Those who are familiar with Frank Herbert's famous novel Dune know that he took his analogy from the oil of the Middle East, and that the novel is symbolic about the dependance of the West on the oil, and the power struggles to control this valuable resource... What is not well known are the various Islamic undertones, and Arabic etymologies that Frank Herbert put in Dune. The purpose of this article is to try to list these themes, and trace them back to whatever Islamic concept there is (if any)."
Damn close reading...
AD GUY STARTER KIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - A kit to make you creative. Just yours for 4 easy payments of $24.95. Included, among other things, are black horn-rimmed glasses so sharp they can cut through a tomato. The government should get this for everyone in Singapore.
***
Quotes:
80% of NSF officers have this dao look, and they all have this sort of girlfriends. Otherwise people think they're gay... Trophy girlfriends. Not very smart one... All look very young.
Random Playlist Song: Paganini - Violin Concerto No. 3 - 01 - Introduzione. Andantino - Allegro marziale
***
Readers are advised to check the "posted by" line at the end of each post to ascertain the identity of the poster.
Back to studying tomorrow. One last paper left - on Friday!
***
I had thought that, just as it is impossible to find Malaysian Fried Noodles anywhere -in- Malaysia, Singapore Bee Hoon is similarly impossible to find in Singapore.
However, in a restaurant along River Valley Road near Great World City, I found "Singapore Bee Hoon", fried with small prawns, small slices of chicken and vegetables, and with a slight red tinge to it. Tym informed me that the "Singapore" element of any dish with the "Singapore" appellation was a sprinkling of curry powder, and indeed that seemed to be the case. [Addendum: Meanwhile Yucheng informs me that 2 years ago, he sighted the same dish on the Island of Doom.]
People expressed disdain at this discovery, saying that they or their mothers could easily cook "Singapore Bee Hoon", but the culinary significance of this discovery cannot be underestimated.
***
A friend in BRMC (Barker Road Methodist Church) gave me probably the most reliable information so far on Lee Wei Kong, the ACJC rugby captain who got involved in the RTA (Road Traffic Accident).
He says that he was either an infidel or a weak christian, that they'd all been praying for him to be seduced by them, and that that day was his first time going to the church.
Meanwhile the BRMC website alternately names him "a friend of BRMC" and a member of BRMC. And he's been getting a lot of get well cards from innocent ACPS students. No doubt he is receiving a great deal of support, encouragement and inducement from similar sources, just as some victims of last year's Tsunami received both preaching and aid.
Unfortunately, especially under this barrage, I fear that he will be seduced by the dark side in his hour of despair. One can only hope for his soul. I am almost moved to go down myself, but know that I will be driven away with pitchforks, doused with Holy Water and burnt at the stake by his protectors.
***
Review of Chasms of Malice:
"The True Shield has been taken by a baddie and will, unless some lone champion rectifies the whole situation, inexplicably give the Khuddam nasties the ability to multiply according to the formula a(n)=7^(2n), a progression the book itself loses track of after the fourth term. That's right, they'll swamp THE WHOLE WORLD. It doesn't matter how many times those Allansian freaks save the planet in _their_ neighbourhood, some other hero slips up once in Khul and it's all for nothing."
nw.t: "first they will be 49, then 2,401, then 5,764,801, until they are uncountable hordes, and Orghuz becomes invincible"
***
To Honor the Earth, Speak to the Issues and Not the Myths - "In addition to having been "grown or produced within 100 miles of Houston (salt, pepper, and olive oil were exempt)," the planet-saving "test supper" could not "have been slathered with pesticides." One conjures an image of mad farmers gleefully going about splashing pesticides all over their crops oblivious to the costs of the pesticides and with some perverse desire to poison their customers and destroy their market and the planet. The use of the term "slathered" to describe the very careful use of low-dose pesticides in modern agriculture and the regulations involved, reflects a prevailing ignorance among food writers and the general public that has been very carefully nurtured by the back-to-nature enthusiasts. They assume that "organic" agriculture does not use pesticides. This is a myth if not an outright fraud. The "organic" movement argues that the "natural" pesticides that it uses are more benign than the synthetic pesticides used in conventional agriculture, but there is no evidence for that. And some of these "natural" pesticides are administered in much larger quantities, which may not be enough to qualify as being "slathered" but certainly are a far closer approximation of "slathered" than are the synthetic pesticides used in conventional agriculture."
Arabic and Islamic themes in Frank Herbert's "Dune" - "Those who are familiar with Frank Herbert's famous novel Dune know that he took his analogy from the oil of the Middle East, and that the novel is symbolic about the dependance of the West on the oil, and the power struggles to control this valuable resource... What is not well known are the various Islamic undertones, and Arabic etymologies that Frank Herbert put in Dune. The purpose of this article is to try to list these themes, and trace them back to whatever Islamic concept there is (if any)."
Damn close reading...
AD GUY STARTER KIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - A kit to make you creative. Just yours for 4 easy payments of $24.95. Included, among other things, are black horn-rimmed glasses so sharp they can cut through a tomato. The government should get this for everyone in Singapore.
***
Quotes:
80% of NSF officers have this dao look, and they all have this sort of girlfriends. Otherwise people think they're gay... Trophy girlfriends. Not very smart one... All look very young.
Someone sent me this site at 2am when I couldn't sleep even though my body was begging for it and I knew work the following morning would be brutal.
http://www.postsecret.blogspot.com/
I'm not entirely sure if feel better or not after going through it.
http://www.postsecret.blogspot.com/
I'm not entirely sure if feel better or not after going through it.
Monday, May 02, 2005
So i have a tendency to fall asleep during movies. And not just any movies, heart-stopping blow-your-eyeballs-out movies.
1) While watching "The green mile". Los Angeles, 1999 on a school trip. Okay, so i thought the front bit was pretty bo-ring and thought i could get away with a bit of shut-eye in a 3-hour movie... kai nudged me in the ribs and woke me up just as a man was being electrocuted. You know, the one where the electrodes connect to a sponge put on the man's head, but the sadistic character did not wet the sponge before electrocution... so the guy was fried... literally.
2) Passion of the christ. Yes i'm a christian and i'm supposed to be all attentive 'n all during the suffering bit... but it was going over and over and over again ...! plus it wasn't my first time watching it.
3) Star wars. I'm not such a big george lucas fan.
1) While watching "The green mile". Los Angeles, 1999 on a school trip. Okay, so i thought the front bit was pretty bo-ring and thought i could get away with a bit of shut-eye in a 3-hour movie... kai nudged me in the ribs and woke me up just as a man was being electrocuted. You know, the one where the electrodes connect to a sponge put on the man's head, but the sadistic character did not wet the sponge before electrocution... so the guy was fried... literally.
2) Passion of the christ. Yes i'm a christian and i'm supposed to be all attentive 'n all during the suffering bit... but it was going over and over and over again ...! plus it wasn't my first time watching it.
3) Star wars. I'm not such a big george lucas fan.
"If you care too much about Singapore, first it'll break your spirit, and finally it will break your heart." - Alfian Sa'at
Random Playlist Song: Bob Rivers - Walkin' Round In Women's Underwear (Sung to the tune of "Winter Wonderland")
Chorus:
Lacy things -- the wife is missin',
Didn't ask -- her permission,
I'm wearin' her clothes,
Her silk pantyhose,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear.
In the store -- there's a teddy,
Little straps -- like spaghetti,
It holds me so tight,
Like handcuffs at night,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear.
Guy:
In the office there's a guy named Melvin,
He pretends that I am Murphy Brown.
Chorus:
He'll say, "Are you ready?" We'll say, "Whoa, Man!"
"Let's wait until the wife is out of town!"
Later on, if you wanna,
We can dress -- like Madonna,
Put on some eyeshade,
And join the parade,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear!
Lacy things... missin',
Didn't ask... permission,
Wearin' her clothes,
Her silk pantyhose,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear!
(This song is dedicated to the people on Triumph fan)
***
My sources tell me that not only have the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia exams been dumbed down, the markers apparently know what ethnicity you are.
Too many people seem to think that I'm a walking dictionary and like to pelt me with requests for word meanings when I am online. Given the diversity and easy availability of online dictionaries, this is most infuriating. In future I shall turn down all such online requests; grammar I can still consider. Either that or give them the wrong meanings! MUAHAHA!!! [Tym: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. You are so evil. You should be a teacher :0 Wicked wicked good idea.]
I wonder why males are so fond of wearing football shirts. Perhaps it is a way they can connect with their dreams and aspirations, and live vicariously through others. In which case I should buy for myself a mullet wig, coloured spandex, or a crossbow.
Listening to the samples on RangDong Entertainment, I realise that Asian Prince's music isn't the same as Tuan Anh's music. I'm quite annoyed. And to think I was going to buy the CD!
***
I find it amusing that some of those who profess to loathe racism so subscribe to the theory that those of Chinese ancestry are obliged to speak their ancestral languages (ie "You are Chinese, so you must speak Chinese"). Such biological determinism is ironically behind most racist behavior (eg "You are Malay, so you must be lazy).
Someone on someone's complaint that a Chinese woman complaining about some Indian's smell on the MRT and moving away was racist:
"I moved a few days back because a CHINESE construction worker plopped his sweaty musty body beside me. In fact, I got up and even though there were people standing and it was the only seat left, no one took it. Was everyone standing RACIST then. And I'm Chinese, so how does that make me racist. Smelly is smelly. It's like someone smoking at the bus stop. They will say "they can't help it", well I can't help fanning my hand in front of my nose to get rid of it. It smelled like preserved fart.
Whoever is smelly, I'll move. That's a totally bad example. I hate it when people think I'm racist just cos I say that person stinks (not to their faces) and they happen to be of a different race. Stink is just Stink. Unless Stink is a race, how am I RACIST?"
Other comments from the same thread: "well, if the government continues to use racial indicators of CMIO for every citizen of mixed heritage (say Indian-Chinese) and make them choose their heritage according to their patrilineal line; if having separate academic bursaries awarded to the Best Chinese/Malay/Indian student instead of a "Best Student" award are enforced; if the education institutes are made to teach -day in, day out- about the 4 major races that we have in Singapore... racial sterotypes comes dangerously close to being interpreted as "racism".
as my friend puts it, as long as you teach about a difference, you are made increasingly aware that you are different and you'll start expecting others to treat you differently. similarly, you'll hold yourself as "befitting" of your racial category. it is, i think, a very bad cycle."
"from personal experiences, i have had people made my life difficult by them claiming precedence over meal decisions cos they have special dietary habits (for all races, mind). because one is ABSOLUTELY brought up to be accepting and tolerant, this happens during EVERY single meal and we have to make extra precautious to not "offend" their sensibilities. *sigh* so pardon me while i try to juggle my frustrations with my needing to strangle that person(s) and dealing with ideals of a better good for the hegemonic whole."
***
I caught the last episode of Stress Out, which was on Joint Pain. It was most amusing, and also really weird, since Jason Chan was no longer speaking in his PRNS pseudo-American accent, but instead in a pseudo-Malaysian-Australian accent.
The show itself was odd, since it promoted what struck me as quasi-alternative therapies, as well as an AIBI product (since they sponsor the show), and ended off with a recipe for fruit salad - supposedly good for joint pain. All this left me going: "wth?!"
***
Quasimodo Neverland
"Pulau Tekong is a disfigured grotesque Neverland of Singapore. Where time stops and people cease to grow up. Where men of 25 have minds of 18 year olds.
Where we are all part of a big handpuppet play and the fat boys of Neverland sing songs and makebelieve.
Where Captain Hooks linger galore and impose false and comical tyranny. With extra swashbuckle oomph and chinkchank flurry.
We are a motley crew of stage soldiers. With wooden swords and little Robin Hood caps." (Two Sleepy People) via No Concept of Liberty, which comments thus:
"The 'extra swashbuckle oomph' also made me think of how these idiots like to make you shout ever more loudly and conform ever more strictly to their little ballet of marching ('Shoulder level, shoulder level!', or 'Dig in your heels!', etc ad nauseum) . These deliberately ostentatious and petty exercises of authority are all quite Foucauldian, and crisply illustrate the whole total institution / Panopticon society thesis. Indeed, they can be said to function as a play-within-a-play in this context, thus magnifying the potential for irony."
***
Someone showed me the website of Bob Jones University, the initials of which are, ironically, BJU.
They have a very interesting dress code:
"For Men: Hair must be cut in a traditional, conservative style–not shaved, spiked, tangled, or shelved. It may not be colored or highlighted.
For All: Abercrombie & Fitch and its subsidiary Hollister have shown an unusual degree of antagonism to the name of Christ and an unusual display of wickedness in their promotions. In protest, we will not allow articles displaying their logos to be worn, carried, or displayed (even if covered or masked in some way)."
Yes, you guessed it! It's a fundie university. They offer over 125 Majors, including Bible, Bible (Women) [Ed: What's the difference? Do they teach women their rightful place in the latter course?], Biology [Ed: I'd trust a biologist who believes in Creationism as much as an obstetrician who believes that the stork delivers babies] and Creative Writing [Ed: They probably share some modules with Bible majors].
I suspect this is where all the fundies get their PhDs so they can themselves "Dr XXX".
[Addendum: Jie Kai adds:
"Bob Jones University is also notorious for having banned inter-racial
relationships up till a few years ago, as well as having a founder who is known
to be virulently anti-catholic, as well as a racist."]
***
Mankiw’s Ten Principles of Economics, Translated by Yoram Bauman
University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
"The cornerstone of Harvard professor N. Gregory Mankiw’s introductory economics textbook, Principles of Economics, is a synthesis of economic thought into Ten Principles of Economics (listed in the first table below). A quick perusal of these will likely affirm the reader’s suspicions that synthesizing economic thought into Ten Principles is no easy task, and may even lead the reader to suspect that the subtlety and concision required are not to be found in the pen of N. Gregory Mankiw.
I have taken it upon myself to remedy this unfortunate situation. The second table below summarizes my attempt to translate Mankiw's Ten Principles into plain English, and in doing so to provide the uninitiated with an invaluable glimpse of the economic mind at work. Explanations and details can be found in the pages that follow, but the average reader is advised to simply cut out the table below and carry it around for assistance in the (hereafter unlikely) event of confusion about the basic Principles of Economics.
------------------------------------------------------------
Mankiw’s Principles
#1. People face tradeoffs.
#2. The cost of something is what you give up to get it.
#3. Rational people think at the margin.
#4. People respond to incentives.
#5. Trade can make everyone better off.
#6. Markets are usually a good way to organize economic activity.
#7. Governments can sometimes improve market outcomes.
#8. A country’s standard of living depends on its ability to produce goods and services.
#9. Prices rise when the government prints too much money.
#10. Society faces a short-run tradeoff between inflation and unemployment.
------------------------------------------------------------
Yoram’s Translations
#1. Choices are bad.
#2. Choices are really bad.
#3. People are stupid.
#4. People aren’t that stupid.
#5. Trade can make everyone worse off.
#6. Governments are stupid.
#7. Governments aren’t that stupid.
#8. Blah blah blah.
#9. Blah blah blah.
#10. Blah blah blah."
Quantum Microeconomics is interesting also, though I don't know if I'll ever get down to reading it.
***
What exactly was the sin of Onan? - "St. Antonius (1391-1451) used so many euphemisms that we're not always sure what he was talking about."
Heh heh
Collective Nouns - "One of the many oddities of the English language is the multitude of different names given to collections or groups, be they beasts, birds, people or things. Many of these collective nouns are beautiful and evocative, even poetic."
Some interesting ones: A covey of ptarmigans (birds), A pomp of pekingese (mammals), A stuck of jellyfish (invertebrates), An intrusion of cockroaches (Insects and Arachnids), An escargatoire of snails (Molluscs), A glean of herrings (Fish), A rhumba of rattlesnakes (Amphibians and Reptiles), A subtlety of sergeants at law (People), A phantasmagoria of phantoms (Miscellaneous)
A Plain School Uniform as the Latest Aphrodisiac - "'Lots of Japanese men feel very threatened by adult women,' said Masao Miyamoto, a male psychiatrist and the author of a best-selling analysis of Japanese society. 'But a 15-year-old girl would not be threatening. It's not so much sexual as psychological.'... 'The age at which the girls seem interesting is clearly dropping,' said Hiroyuki Fukuda, a 30-year-old man who edits a magazine called Anatomical Illustrations of Junior High School Girls. 'But it's only the maniacs who go for girls below the third grade.'"
At least it's not cockroaches...
The latest Happy Tree Friends episode is out! Keepin It Reel: Check out what's on screen at the cinema!
***
"haha, ***, perhaps ya shouldnt have mentioned Descartes; Descartes is the food and staple of our esteemed philsopher Gabriel Seah, and he can go on for hours on philosophy, u wun wan to get him started on it man......oops sorry gabriel! spilled ur lil secret....!" - Gah.
I don't know how people can spend so much time studying and mugging. Don't they run out of things to study? Don't they get bored? Maybe it's because on average, half of people's study hours are spent on MSN, gossiping, stoning, SMSing and looking at eyecandy. Or maybe it's like the people who stay back in the office everyday later than their colleagues, not because they're hard-working, but because they're unproductive.
I was in the Law Library to pick something up from someone and it struck me how comparatively empty the place was.
At that time of the exam period, the Central Library was messy, smelly and crowded, yet the Law Library still had space available; at least a fourth of its capacity. Furthermore, it was quiet as a real library should be: there were no "Quiet Area" signs, and you know when libraries designate "Quiet Areas", they've given up on the battle to enforce silence throughout the library (and probably the "Quiet Areas" too). Maybe the hallowed aura of the place had intimidated the mortal denizens of the Premier Institution of Social Engineering. Maybe the Law Library's emptiness was a well-kept secret. Perhaps the off-fresh paint smell of the place drove people away. Or the well-shielded library blocked handphone signals, so the SACSALs couldn't SMS or chat merrily away.
Yet, a cursory walk down the aisles revealed that the majority of the people in there were non-Law students - the hated SNAILS (Students Not Actually In Law School) - and a greatly disproportinate number were Ang Mohs. Where were all the Law Students, I wondered? Later I found out that the Year 2s and Year 3s were having exams.
In my short time there, I did witness a disturbing sight. I saw one girl, who looked like she was a law girl, wearing a Sarong Skirt - a garment not made of Sarong material but with a thicker cloth, yet gathered and tied around the waste like a Sarong. While sitting at a terminal, she untied her garment, pulled it up and then retied it, all in a blase fashion. Which meant she probably had something on underneath, but still - in public?
Quotes:
[On the girls on their toilet outing] They'll take quite long. 5 girls and 1 guy.
Random Playlist Song: Bob Rivers - Walkin' Round In Women's Underwear (Sung to the tune of "Winter Wonderland")
Chorus:
Lacy things -- the wife is missin',
Didn't ask -- her permission,
I'm wearin' her clothes,
Her silk pantyhose,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear.
In the store -- there's a teddy,
Little straps -- like spaghetti,
It holds me so tight,
Like handcuffs at night,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear.
Guy:
In the office there's a guy named Melvin,
He pretends that I am Murphy Brown.
Chorus:
He'll say, "Are you ready?" We'll say, "Whoa, Man!"
"Let's wait until the wife is out of town!"
Later on, if you wanna,
We can dress -- like Madonna,
Put on some eyeshade,
And join the parade,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear!
Lacy things... missin',
Didn't ask... permission,
Wearin' her clothes,
Her silk pantyhose,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear,
Walkin' 'round in women's underwear!
(This song is dedicated to the people on Triumph fan)
***
My sources tell me that not only have the Sijil Tinggi Persekolahan Malaysia exams been dumbed down, the markers apparently know what ethnicity you are.
Too many people seem to think that I'm a walking dictionary and like to pelt me with requests for word meanings when I am online. Given the diversity and easy availability of online dictionaries, this is most infuriating. In future I shall turn down all such online requests; grammar I can still consider. Either that or give them the wrong meanings! MUAHAHA!!! [Tym: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. You are so evil. You should be a teacher :0 Wicked wicked good idea.]
I wonder why males are so fond of wearing football shirts. Perhaps it is a way they can connect with their dreams and aspirations, and live vicariously through others. In which case I should buy for myself a mullet wig, coloured spandex, or a crossbow.
Listening to the samples on RangDong Entertainment, I realise that Asian Prince's music isn't the same as Tuan Anh's music. I'm quite annoyed. And to think I was going to buy the CD!
***
I find it amusing that some of those who profess to loathe racism so subscribe to the theory that those of Chinese ancestry are obliged to speak their ancestral languages (ie "You are Chinese, so you must speak Chinese"). Such biological determinism is ironically behind most racist behavior (eg "You are Malay, so you must be lazy).
Someone on someone's complaint that a Chinese woman complaining about some Indian's smell on the MRT and moving away was racist:
"I moved a few days back because a CHINESE construction worker plopped his sweaty musty body beside me. In fact, I got up and even though there were people standing and it was the only seat left, no one took it. Was everyone standing RACIST then. And I'm Chinese, so how does that make me racist. Smelly is smelly. It's like someone smoking at the bus stop. They will say "they can't help it", well I can't help fanning my hand in front of my nose to get rid of it. It smelled like preserved fart.
Whoever is smelly, I'll move. That's a totally bad example. I hate it when people think I'm racist just cos I say that person stinks (not to their faces) and they happen to be of a different race. Stink is just Stink. Unless Stink is a race, how am I RACIST?"
Other comments from the same thread: "well, if the government continues to use racial indicators of CMIO for every citizen of mixed heritage (say Indian-Chinese) and make them choose their heritage according to their patrilineal line; if having separate academic bursaries awarded to the Best Chinese/Malay/Indian student instead of a "Best Student" award are enforced; if the education institutes are made to teach -day in, day out- about the 4 major races that we have in Singapore... racial sterotypes comes dangerously close to being interpreted as "racism".
as my friend puts it, as long as you teach about a difference, you are made increasingly aware that you are different and you'll start expecting others to treat you differently. similarly, you'll hold yourself as "befitting" of your racial category. it is, i think, a very bad cycle."
"from personal experiences, i have had people made my life difficult by them claiming precedence over meal decisions cos they have special dietary habits (for all races, mind). because one is ABSOLUTELY brought up to be accepting and tolerant, this happens during EVERY single meal and we have to make extra precautious to not "offend" their sensibilities. *sigh* so pardon me while i try to juggle my frustrations with my needing to strangle that person(s) and dealing with ideals of a better good for the hegemonic whole."
***
I caught the last episode of Stress Out, which was on Joint Pain. It was most amusing, and also really weird, since Jason Chan was no longer speaking in his PRNS pseudo-American accent, but instead in a pseudo-Malaysian-Australian accent.
The show itself was odd, since it promoted what struck me as quasi-alternative therapies, as well as an AIBI product (since they sponsor the show), and ended off with a recipe for fruit salad - supposedly good for joint pain. All this left me going: "wth?!"
***
Quasimodo Neverland
"Pulau Tekong is a disfigured grotesque Neverland of Singapore. Where time stops and people cease to grow up. Where men of 25 have minds of 18 year olds.
Where we are all part of a big handpuppet play and the fat boys of Neverland sing songs and makebelieve.
Where Captain Hooks linger galore and impose false and comical tyranny. With extra swashbuckle oomph and chinkchank flurry.
We are a motley crew of stage soldiers. With wooden swords and little Robin Hood caps." (Two Sleepy People) via No Concept of Liberty, which comments thus:
"The 'extra swashbuckle oomph' also made me think of how these idiots like to make you shout ever more loudly and conform ever more strictly to their little ballet of marching ('Shoulder level, shoulder level!', or 'Dig in your heels!', etc ad nauseum) . These deliberately ostentatious and petty exercises of authority are all quite Foucauldian, and crisply illustrate the whole total institution / Panopticon society thesis. Indeed, they can be said to function as a play-within-a-play in this context, thus magnifying the potential for irony."
***
Someone showed me the website of Bob Jones University, the initials of which are, ironically, BJU.
They have a very interesting dress code:
"For Men: Hair must be cut in a traditional, conservative style–not shaved, spiked, tangled, or shelved. It may not be colored or highlighted.
For All: Abercrombie & Fitch and its subsidiary Hollister have shown an unusual degree of antagonism to the name of Christ and an unusual display of wickedness in their promotions. In protest, we will not allow articles displaying their logos to be worn, carried, or displayed (even if covered or masked in some way)."
Yes, you guessed it! It's a fundie university. They offer over 125 Majors, including Bible, Bible (Women) [Ed: What's the difference? Do they teach women their rightful place in the latter course?], Biology [Ed: I'd trust a biologist who believes in Creationism as much as an obstetrician who believes that the stork delivers babies] and Creative Writing [Ed: They probably share some modules with Bible majors].
I suspect this is where all the fundies get their PhDs so they can themselves "Dr XXX".
[Addendum: Jie Kai adds:
"Bob Jones University is also notorious for having banned inter-racial
relationships up till a few years ago, as well as having a founder who is known
to be virulently anti-catholic, as well as a racist."]
***
Mankiw’s Ten Principles of Economics, Translated by Yoram Bauman
University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
"The cornerstone of Harvard professor N. Gregory Mankiw’s introductory economics textbook, Principles of Economics, is a synthesis of economic thought into Ten Principles of Economics (listed in the first table below). A quick perusal of these will likely affirm the reader’s suspicions that synthesizing economic thought into Ten Principles is no easy task, and may even lead the reader to suspect that the subtlety and concision required are not to be found in the pen of N. Gregory Mankiw.
I have taken it upon myself to remedy this unfortunate situation. The second table below summarizes my attempt to translate Mankiw's Ten Principles into plain English, and in doing so to provide the uninitiated with an invaluable glimpse of the economic mind at work. Explanations and details can be found in the pages that follow, but the average reader is advised to simply cut out the table below and carry it around for assistance in the (hereafter unlikely) event of confusion about the basic Principles of Economics.
------------------------------------------------------------
Mankiw’s Principles
#1. People face tradeoffs.
#2. The cost of something is what you give up to get it.
#3. Rational people think at the margin.
#4. People respond to incentives.
#5. Trade can make everyone better off.
#6. Markets are usually a good way to organize economic activity.
#7. Governments can sometimes improve market outcomes.
#8. A country’s standard of living depends on its ability to produce goods and services.
#9. Prices rise when the government prints too much money.
#10. Society faces a short-run tradeoff between inflation and unemployment.
------------------------------------------------------------
Yoram’s Translations
#1. Choices are bad.
#2. Choices are really bad.
#3. People are stupid.
#4. People aren’t that stupid.
#5. Trade can make everyone worse off.
#6. Governments are stupid.
#7. Governments aren’t that stupid.
#8. Blah blah blah.
#9. Blah blah blah.
#10. Blah blah blah."
Quantum Microeconomics is interesting also, though I don't know if I'll ever get down to reading it.
***
What exactly was the sin of Onan? - "St. Antonius (1391-1451) used so many euphemisms that we're not always sure what he was talking about."
Heh heh
Collective Nouns - "One of the many oddities of the English language is the multitude of different names given to collections or groups, be they beasts, birds, people or things. Many of these collective nouns are beautiful and evocative, even poetic."
Some interesting ones: A covey of ptarmigans (birds), A pomp of pekingese (mammals), A stuck of jellyfish (invertebrates), An intrusion of cockroaches (Insects and Arachnids), An escargatoire of snails (Molluscs), A glean of herrings (Fish), A rhumba of rattlesnakes (Amphibians and Reptiles), A subtlety of sergeants at law (People), A phantasmagoria of phantoms (Miscellaneous)
A Plain School Uniform as the Latest Aphrodisiac - "'Lots of Japanese men feel very threatened by adult women,' said Masao Miyamoto, a male psychiatrist and the author of a best-selling analysis of Japanese society. 'But a 15-year-old girl would not be threatening. It's not so much sexual as psychological.'... 'The age at which the girls seem interesting is clearly dropping,' said Hiroyuki Fukuda, a 30-year-old man who edits a magazine called Anatomical Illustrations of Junior High School Girls. 'But it's only the maniacs who go for girls below the third grade.'"
At least it's not cockroaches...
The latest Happy Tree Friends episode is out! Keepin It Reel: Check out what's on screen at the cinema!
***
"haha, ***, perhaps ya shouldnt have mentioned Descartes; Descartes is the food and staple of our esteemed philsopher Gabriel Seah, and he can go on for hours on philosophy, u wun wan to get him started on it man......oops sorry gabriel! spilled ur lil secret....!" - Gah.
I don't know how people can spend so much time studying and mugging. Don't they run out of things to study? Don't they get bored? Maybe it's because on average, half of people's study hours are spent on MSN, gossiping, stoning, SMSing and looking at eyecandy. Or maybe it's like the people who stay back in the office everyday later than their colleagues, not because they're hard-working, but because they're unproductive.
I was in the Law Library to pick something up from someone and it struck me how comparatively empty the place was.
At that time of the exam period, the Central Library was messy, smelly and crowded, yet the Law Library still had space available; at least a fourth of its capacity. Furthermore, it was quiet as a real library should be: there were no "Quiet Area" signs, and you know when libraries designate "Quiet Areas", they've given up on the battle to enforce silence throughout the library (and probably the "Quiet Areas" too). Maybe the hallowed aura of the place had intimidated the mortal denizens of the Premier Institution of Social Engineering. Maybe the Law Library's emptiness was a well-kept secret. Perhaps the off-fresh paint smell of the place drove people away. Or the well-shielded library blocked handphone signals, so the SACSALs couldn't SMS or chat merrily away.
Yet, a cursory walk down the aisles revealed that the majority of the people in there were non-Law students - the hated SNAILS (Students Not Actually In Law School) - and a greatly disproportinate number were Ang Mohs. Where were all the Law Students, I wondered? Later I found out that the Year 2s and Year 3s were having exams.
In my short time there, I did witness a disturbing sight. I saw one girl, who looked like she was a law girl, wearing a Sarong Skirt - a garment not made of Sarong material but with a thicker cloth, yet gathered and tied around the waste like a Sarong. While sitting at a terminal, she untied her garment, pulled it up and then retied it, all in a blase fashion. Which meant she probably had something on underneath, but still - in public?
Quotes:
[On the girls on their toilet outing] They'll take quite long. 5 girls and 1 guy.
